The desert locust is a species of locust, a swarming short-horned grasshopper. (Representational image)
Swarms of locusts entered Prayagraj district in Uttar Pradesh on Thursday and destroyed standing crops in the farms, prompting locals to burst firecrackers and play songs at high volume to drive them away.
There was prior information from the last two days that a swarm of locusts would enter Prayagraj.
"When I went out of my house, I saw a swarm of locusts. Crackers were being burst to drive them away," Sonam Devi, a local resident said.
"Suddenly, we saw a swarm of locusts come here. They have created chaos. We started bursting crackers and playing songs at high volume to drive them away. The locusts are creating a lot of problems," Yashasvi, another local resident said.
The desert locust is a species of locust, a swarming short-horned grasshopper. They are known to devour everything in their path, posing an unprecedented threat to food supply and livelihoods of millions of people.